Singapore Economy

Infrastructure gaps in region mean business for Singapore SMEs
If you were to order a can of Coke on a remote holiday island in the Philippines at midday, chances are it won't be cold. With no central source of electricity, most food and retail establishments on such off-grid islands run on portable diesel generators, which are switched on for a mere four hours a day to cool their refrigerators.https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/sme/infrastructure-gaps-in-region-mean-business-for-singapore-smes

For Singapore startups, India is a land of fintech opportunities
A huge 1.3 billion population, strong government support for going cashless, and an "existential crisis" faced by traditional financial institutions (FIs), are among the factors that make India a promising land for Singapore fintech startups, The Business Times has learnt. As many as five Singapore fintech startups have set up shop in India or sold their solutions to companies in India in the last five years, according to Enterprise Singapore, the government agency championing enterprise development and internationalisation.https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/startups/for-singapore-startups-india-is-a-land-of-fintech-opportunities

Singapore Real Estate

Latest cooling measures to bite harder than earlier ones: CDL
The group chief executive of City Developments Ltd (CDL), Sherman Kwek, says the impact of the property cooling measures rolled out last month will be rather different from that in the 2010-to-early-2013 period. Despite successive rounds of cooling measures being rolled out during those years, private home buyers managed to get round the negativity and continue pushing on, he recalled.https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/latest-cooling-measures-to-bite-harder-than-earlier-ones-cdl

Tapering Singapore office supply gives landlords room to increase rents
Singapore — Singapore’s office market is in the early stages of a recovery as tapering office supply and strong pre-commitment levels have caused the office vacancy rate to decline, offering landlords higher bargaining power to increase rents. “Office rent is expected to increase by 20 to 25 per cent between 2018 and 2020, of which 12 to 16 per cent is expected in 2018,” said Ms Regina Lim, head of capital markets research at JLL in South-east Asia, adding that prime office rents have already risen by 6 per cent in the first half.https://www.todayonline.com/singapore/tapering-singapore-office-supply-gives-landlords-room-increase-rents

Far East Hospitality sees room for variety as it grows
Mid-tier hotel operator Far East Hospitality's chief executive Arthur Kiong acknowledges the rosy statistics for the hospitality industry: tourism arrivals were up to 17.4 million last year and hotel occupancy this year hovers around the mid-80s. Pointing to Singapore Tourism Board (STB) figures that show average room rates for the mid-tier segment between January to May standing at S$168.20, after falling from S$184.90 to S$167 between 2014 and 2017, he said a recovery could happen this year.https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/far-east-hospitality-sees-room-for-variety-as-it-grows

Fragrance Group's net profit up 20.5% in Q2
Fragrance Group posted a net profit of S$5.38 million for its second quarter, up 20.5 per cent from a year ago. Revenue went up 62.5 per cent to S$56.8 million, on account of higher contributions from its City Gate development project in Singapore, rental revenue from commercial properties, and full quarter hotel operations income from ibis Styles Hobart, in Australia, which commenced operations in July 2017.https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/fragrance-groups-net-profit-up-205-in-q2

Oxley to sell Tokyo property for 855.2m yen
Oxley Holdings announced that its wholly owned subsidiary Godo Kaisha Oxley Tokyo is selling its Akasaka property to three individual buyers for an aggregate price of 855.2 million yen (S$10.5 million). The property located at Lot Number 1603, Akasaka 2-chome, Minato-ku, Tokyo comprises an 11-storey strata-titled residential building with total floor area of 623.89 square metres, sited on freehold land with a total area of 165.28 square metres.https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/oxley-to-sell-tokyo-property-for-8552m-yen

PropNex Q2 net profit up 3.9% despite IPO-related costs
Real estate agency PropNex has turned in a second-quarter showing spurred on by the property price recovery in the first half of 2018. Net profit stood at S$4.2 million for the three months to June 30, an increase of 3.9 per cent on the previous year, according to unaudited results released on Wednesday. The company said that earnings, including minority interests, would have grown by 26 per cent from S$4.6 million to nearly S$5.8 million if S$1.1 million in listing-related expenses were excluded.https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/propnex-q2-net-profit-up-39-despite-ipo-related-costs

Views, Reviews, Forum & Others

Caught in the crossfire of trade tensions
The trade tensions between the US and China - the world's largest and second-largest economies, respectively - are escalating. US President Donald Trump last month accelerated the risk of a trade war by more than doubling planned tariffs to 25 per cent on US$200 billion in Chinese imports in a bid to nudge China to re-think its behaviour.https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/real-estate/caught-in-the-crossfire-of-trade-tensions

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DisclaimerReal Estate Developers' Association of Singapore does not warrant the accuracy, adequacy or completeness of the information and expressly disclaims liability for errors or omissions therein. The content, accuracy, and opinions expressed are not investigated, verified, monitored, nor endorsed by Real Estate Developers' Association of Singapore. Every effort is taken to ensure that all information extracted is correct at the time of dissemination 10 Aug, 2018.